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A 1,461-Year Growing Season Precipitation Reconstruction For The Carolina Coastal Plain, Kathryn Perkins Wolff

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A recollection and dating of ancient cypress trees and subfossil logs was performed at Black River, North Carolina, and the separate Black River, South Carolina. The new updated and expanded chronologies date from AD 365 to 2010 and 549 to 2010, respectively. Baldcypress ring-width chronologies are dominated by high inter-annual to decadal variability and do not tend to capture century scale fluctuations in tree-ring growth that could be associated with centennial scale change in climate. The tree-ring chronologies were standardized with a technique designed to preserve low frequency variance known as regional curve standardization. The two chronologies were averaged into …

Places, Kellyn Bailey

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

There is an certain discomfort that accompanies stepping outside the known into the unfamiliar. Yet in my life, the endeavors I have been the most uncertain about have often turned out to be the most rewarding to me. This is especially true in the case of traveling. My first major experience away from home came with an opportunity to participate in a month-long study abroad in Switzerland. My uneasiness about the prospect of spending an extended period of time thousands of miles away from home almost kept me from going. In my life, I can identify a small handful of …

Developing A Master Data Sharing Agreement May 2012, The Foundation Review

Research, Reports, and Publications

No abstract provided.

Analyzing Tophets: Did The Phoenicians Practice Child Sacrifice?, Katelyn Dibenedetto

Anthropology

This paper examines the controversies surrounding Phoenician religious practices and in particular, the Phoenician Tophet, a cemetery containing the cremated remains of infants and young children in clay jars. According to ancient Hebrew and Greek sources, in the ceremony known as mulk, the oldest son was placed on the arms of a bronze statue and dropped into a brazier below. Though these ancient authors were unanimous in criticizing Phoenician religious practices as cruel and savage, the use of these biased sources to conclude that child sacrifice did occur remains controversial. Both the Hebrew and Greek sources were xenophobic and furthermore, …

Creating A Modern Wilderness Playground: The Transformation Of The Adirondack State Park, 1920-1980, Jonathan David Anzalone

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

My dissertation examines the ways in which the construction of elaborate recreational facilities and the implementation of urban planning in the Adirondack Park had profound impacts on the region's woodlands and rural communities. Park-making, I argue, was not a nostalgic endeavor to preserve an unchanging wilderness, but rather a collaborative effort by state administrators, caretakers, private developers, residents, and recreation seekers to modernize the Adirondacks. Planners' notion of recreation as a set of wholesome activities pursued by urban and suburban families in an unthreatening environment significantly shaped their approach to park development. After World War I, administrators began offering visitors …

Finding Humanity In The Search For Nature: Adorno, Bloch, And Merleau-Ponty, Shannon Hayes

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

There is an air that hovers over the twenty-first century, an air that foretells of an imminent ecological catastrophe. Defensive practices such as recycling, and the promotion of the responsible usage of natural resources, help to slow the destruction of the earth, but they do not solve its impending destruction. They do not point out of the problem, towards a world freed from ecological problems. This thesis attempts to point outwards, towards a different relationship between nature and humanity that hopes to answer the ontological question, "how do we solve the problem of ecological problems?" With Karl Marx we find …

River Of Gray Gold: Cultural And Material Changes In The Land Of Ores, Country Of Minerals, 1719 - 1839, Mark Milton Chambers

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

This dissertation uncovers a narrative about Indians, Europeans, and Americans who created a mining amalgam. Long before the technological exchange that extended across the Atlantic to the United States, Native American and European miners engaged in complicated interactions regarding their environmental knowledge and their respective prospecting, extracting, and smelting methods. In effect, between 1719 and 1839 miners interacted to create a cross-cultural dialogue that involved a hybrid of mining techniques that shaped their attitudes about each other during multiple encounters on the mining frontier. This study also shows that Native Americans, despite the limitations of their technologies, engaged in yet …

Bordertown, Ruqqiya Lydia Greenidge

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Abstract of the Thesis Bordertown by Ruqqiya Lydia Greenidge Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and Literature Stony Brook University 2012 This is a novel in parts with characters connected through their relationships within their strange city: Border, Connecticut. Border, located in the northwest corner of Connecticut (nestled safely in Salisbury), is unusual in several ways: the topography of the town is a hodgepodge of the topography of the entire United States, complete with a Nile-esque river, dense forests, and a perilous mountain rage. The only safe way out is a large, steel bridge. Basically, the town is thoroughly …

From The Foreland To The Hinterland: Taphonomy Across The Cretaceous To Paleogene Sevier Retroarc Region Of Nevada, Joshua William Bonde

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Until 2004 very little paleobiology, let alone paleoecology, had been studied within exposures of the Sevier retro-arc foreland and hinterland, in the state of Nevada. This is due largely to poor and spotty exposure. This study focuses on taphonomic processes within three stratigraphic intervals in the foreland and hinterland of the Sevier retro-arc region, and what these taphonomic indicators reveal about the geography of the hinterland.

First, the Willow Tank Formation of southern Nevada was deposited in the foredeep of the Sevier retroarc foreland basin. This unit represents a multi-channel, aggradational, fluvial system that drained the Sevier highlands to the …

Prehistoric Foraging Strategies In The Piute Valley Of Southern Nevada, Christopher Alan Brosman

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Piute Valley of Southern Nevada is an incredibly diverse but arid zone in the eastern portion of the Mojave Desert. Most of this diversity can be attributed to the elevation shifts ranging from the Colorado River basin to the peaks of the surrounding mountain ranges. These peaks and valleys provide a multitude of resource zones in which prehistoric hunter-gatherers could provision themselves throughout the year. For this thesis I have used archaeological survey, paleo-climate models, life-sciences data and ethnographic research to perform an in-depth land use analysis of prehistoric forager adaptations to this challenging but life-sustaining environment.

Recent investigations …

Valley Of Fire Petroglyphs: A New Perspective On An Old Idea, Eric John Pacl

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This research paper proposes to enhance the approach used in the interpretative methods of petroglyphs, in particular those located in the Valley of Fire State Park in Southern Nevada. Along with the actual content, the contextual element of elevation, in relation to ground level, will be used in an analysis of the petroglyphs located in the park. Intermittently throughout the park petroglyphs are visible at various elevations, from current ground level to the top of the rock formations several hundred feet vertically. It is this contextual element of elevation that will be key in the attempt to begin interpreting both …

"So Much For Fond Five-Dollar Memories": Prostitution In Las Vegas, 1905-1955, Marie Katherine Rowley

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Over the fifty years examined in this thesis, the interactions between federal and local officials shaped prostitution policy in Las Vegas and Clark County. At times that federal authorities were concerned about prostitution in the county, local leaders balanced tradition and economic necessity in their responses. In the early twentieth century, prostitution's benefits to the local economy outweighed fear of federal reprisals, so local officials worked to protect the city's brothels. By the start of World War II, the federal government's increased power and presence in the West made local officials more willing to abandon the tolerance for prostitution in …

Modern Modesty: The Renegotiation Of Female Pious Dress In Modern Pentecostal Assemblies, Amanda Beth Phillips

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Hair buns, high necklines, long sleeves, ankle length skirts, and simple yet practical work style shoes have exemplified Pentecostal women's dress throughout the history of the movement. Their bodies fervently protected from impropriety and immorality, through prescribed attire, are the sites upon which the church inscribes its vision of the modest Pentecostal woman. How dress is used within the community to `set apart' those assembly members whom have achieved the appropriate holiness lifestyle not only makes them upstanding members of the church assembly but also defines them as `saints' (sanctified ones, holy assembly members) and helps to develop their relationship …

Reappraising The Land Behind Baghdad: Using Corona Satellite Imagery To Reassess The Archaeological Landscape Of The Diyala Plain, Iraq, James Henry Wesolowski

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

High-resolution low-cost declassified CORONA spy satellite imagery is used to detect archaeological sites and relict canals in the Diyala Plain to the east of Baghdad, Iraq. This project seeks to improve upon the ground survey conducted there in the 1950s by providing better geographic control and discovering sites and canals that were not included in the original survey. CORONA imagery provides a sub-2-meter spatial resolution and was acquired shortly after the original ground survey was conducted, providing an excellent medium for comparison. CORONA imagery is subject to significant spatial distortions because of its camera technology and the LPS package for …

Interregionalism As A Foreign Policy Of The European Union: A Case For Soft Power?, Maxim Miroshnikov

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

This paper looks at the interregionalism as a part of the European Union's foreign policy. It argues that the EU's use of soft power can be traced within this policy. The paper proposes two methods of defining soft power in action: through presence and through purposive action. Three case studies are analyzed to support this. It is shown that indeed the EU exercised soft power toward other actors using these mechanisms. Success of these actions was however not always present.

Human Trafficking Post 9/11 Policy And Practice Beyond Cutting The Tail Off The Snake, Alexandra Caitlin Rice

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

The U.S. Department of State estimates that 600,000 to 800,000 victims are trafficked across international borders each year, approximately 14,500 to 17,500 of which are trafficked into the United States. The Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000 (VTVPA) was created to combat human trafficking in the country, and as a result created the T-visa to provide immigration relief to non-citizen victims of trafficking. In this work I analyze U.S. government efforts to combat trafficking in the twelve years following implementation of the VTVPA. I expand my analysis beyond T-visa distribution data to incorporate interviews with high-level government …

Securing South Africa's Future Grandmothers Against Poverty And Aids As A Model For Social Development Change, Savannah Lynn Eck

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Focusing on the role of elder women in South Africa as a lens to understand the central connections among HIV/ AIDS, poverty and Human Security provides a distinct approach to analyze women's contributions to community development and social change. Drawing from the theories of Gender and Development and Human Security, this research aims to highlight HIV/ AIDS as a social and political security issue, while underscoring the vitality of the inclusion of women in the processes of peace building, reconciliation, education and social development. Furthermore, the influential role of elder women in South Africa will serve as a model in …

Classroom Management Styles: The Differences Among Traditionally-Licensed Teachers Who Were Formally Paraprofessionals And Alternatively-Licensed Teachers, Caterria Beasley Payton

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine ifthere was a difference in the attitudes and beliefs of traditionally certified teachers who were previously assistant teachers and alternatively certified teachers regarding classroom management. The instrument used in the study was the Attitudes and Beliefs on Classroom Control Inventory -Revised and Revisited (ABCC-R) (Martin, Yin, & Mayall, 2008). The sample included 171 participants. Seventy seven of those participants were traditionally certified teachers who were previously assistant teachers, and 94 alternatively certified teachers from four school districts across the state.

The study focused on two dimensions of classroom management: Instructional Management, tasks …

The Relationship Between The Pedagogical Use Of Differentiated Instructional Strategies And 3rd, 4th, And 5th Grade Language Arts Achievement, Kenitra Lasha Barnes

Dissertations

Today’s classrooms are comprised of students who perform on a myriad of levels. As a result of both state and federal mandates, educators have been charged with the task of ensuring that all students master the required grade level benchmarks at the end of each school term. The challenge in carrying out that duty is finding strategic ways of reaching all students, regardless of their performance levels. The stricter state mandates have placed many classroom teachers in a compromising position that leaves them with no time to remediate students who may struggle with mastering a skill and minimal time to …

Report: The Illinois State University Faculty-Staff Newsletter, May 1, 2012, Illinois State University

Illinois State University Report (1966-2012)

Illinois State University bi-weekly employee newsletter.

The Evolution Of The U.S. Logistics Outsourcing Industry: An Organizational Ecology Perspective, Wei Ping Saw

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study intends to shed some light into the evolution of the logistics outsourcing industry in the U.S. with the help of the predictive power of organizational ecology, and to further emphasize the usefulness of organizational ecology as a tool to predict the evolution of other industries as well. This paper will hopefully be beneficial to managers in the logistics outsourcing industry as well as to scholars in the academic community. Managers in the logistics outsourcing industry could potentially utilize the findings from this study to better understand the evolution of the industry and hopefully better strategize future actions and …

Cultivating An Opportunity: Access And Inclusion In Seattle's Community Gardens, Alice K. Opalka

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis explores the social dynamics of community gardens and their participation within them in the contemporary food justice movement in Seattle, Washington. Community gardens are seen as solutions to myriad urban and environmental problems, such as food deserts, community empowerment, urban greening, environmental education and sustainability of the food system. Three case studies of Seattle organizations, the P-Patch Program, Lettuce Link and Alleycat Acres, provide a basis for analysis of the purported benefit of community empowerment as a function of organizational structure, history and policies. City government support, flexibility, and a critical outlook towards the processes of inclusion and …

Isolated Capital Cities, Accountability And Corruption: Evidence From Us States, Filipe R. Campante, Quoc-Anh Do

Research Collection School Of Economics

We show that isolated capital cities are robustly associated with greater levels of corruption across US states. In particular, this is the case when we use the variation induced by the exogenous location of a state’s centroid to instrument for the concentration of population around the capital city. We then show that different mechanisms for holding state politicians accountable are also affected by the spatial distribution of population: newspapers provide greater coverage of state politics when their audiences are more concentrated around the capital, and voter turnout in state elections is greater in places that are closer to the capital. …

Comparison Of Academic Achievement, College Readiness, And Perception Between Students From Traditional High Schools And The Gatton Academy, Tim Gott

Dissertations

Secondary education in the United States has been evolving from the early days of Latin grammar schools to the present broad spectrum of high school structures. This study focuses on one of the latest types of high school models – specialized secondary schools. In particular, the intent of this study was to assess whether high ability students in one such program, the Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science, demonstrate between-group differences from their high ability peers in traditional high schools in the areas of academic achievement, college readiness, and perceptions on the high school experience.

To determine whether these differences …

Pittsburg State University Annual Commencement, May 2012, Pittsburg State University

Commencement, 1903-Present

Program of undergraduate and graduate commencement exercises at Pittsburg State University on May of 2012

Modeling The Effects Of Substance Dependence On General Self-Reported Health Using Nominal Regression, Taylor Moseley

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The goal of this research project was to produce a model of the effects of drug dependence on general self-rated health. Due to power issues, two additional models, one for cocaine and one for heroin, were required. The models used data from the 2005-2009 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. The result of this effort was a ranking of the effects of drug dependence on general health for individuals and for the study population. The model controlled for infectious, chronic and mental illness as well as sociodemographic variables. Significantly increased odds ratios were found for alcohol, marijuana, analgesics, and …

Intentional Internationalization Of Higher Education: A Strategic Institutional Response To Globalization, Adrian Raul Cornelius

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Campus internationalization is increasingly becoming a profitable strategy used by colleges and universities to counteract the transformative effects of globalization on higher education. As institutions begin to rely more heavily on this dimension of their organizational programming, it becomes essential that they engage in the best possible planning practices to ensure a systematic and sustainable initiative. Failure to plan effectively might derail expectations and compromise institutional viability. The literature investigation of this study suggests that organizational intentionality might be a useful strategy for systemic internationalization planning. The purpose of this mixed-methods study, therefore, was to determine how organizational intentionality has …

Stakeholder's Perceptions Of Supplemental Online Learning For Credit Recovery, Theresa Jeanne Pettyjohn

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

District decision-makers and school leaders are faced with the challenge of evaluating various options to support at-risk students who are in danger of not graduating with their peers. Supplemental online learning is considered an innovative means of assisting students with credit recovery. Virtual schools and commercial curriculum providers have enumerated the benefits of online learning; however, the majority of the research has been conducted on post-secondary learners. Therefore, the purpose of this qualitative study was to understand stakeholders' perceptions of the benefits and challenges of high school supplemental online learning for credit recovery. This qualitative study employed a single case …

Comparison Of Archeological Survey Techniques At Camp Lawton, A Civil War Prison Stockade, James Kevin Chapman

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

In 2009, Dr. Sue Moore of Georgia Southern University was contacted by State Archeologist Dr. Dave Crass of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Historic Preservation Division. He proposed an exploratory survey of the site of a Civil War Confederate prisoner of war camp known as Camp Lawton located on Magnolia Springs State Park and Bo Ginn National Fish Hatchery in Millen, Georgia. Camp Lawton was constructed, occupied, and abandoned over an approximately three month period in the fall of 1864. The survey served a twofold purpose. First, was to evaluate survey methods to determine the most efficient for use …

Using Short-Term Environmental Education Programs To Increase Student Learning And Elicit Positive Attitude Change, Tiffany Kinder

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Short-term environmental education programs such as water festivals and field days are a common outreach tool for watershed programs, yet little is known about their effectiveness at increasing knowledge and environmental awareness. To address this question, I conducted a formal assessment by pre- and post-testing 1400 fourth-grade students who participated in a field day at a Forest Service campground in northern Utah. During the day, each child spent approximately one hour engaged in water-related activities, with an emphasis on aquatic macroinvertebrates and water quality. My research focused on whether this single hour was sufficient to change both knowledge and interest …